icrel, Inc.
MIC2587/MIC2587R
anuary 24, 2013
13
Revision 2.0
Functional Description
Hot Swap Insertion
When circuit boards are inserted into systems carrying
live supply voltages ("hot swapped"), high inrush currents
often result due to the charging of bulk capacitance that
resides across the circuit board's supply pins. These
current spikes can cause the system's supply voltages to
temporarily go out of regulation causing data loss or
system lock-up. In more extreme cases, the transients
occurring during a hot swap event may cause permanent
damage to connectors or other on-board components.
The MIC2587/MIC2587R was designed to address these
issues by limiting the maximum current that is allowed to
flow during hot swap events. This is achieved by
implementing a constant-current control loop at turn-on.
In addition to inrush current control, the MIC2587 and
MIC2587R    incorporate    input    voltage    supervisory
functions and user-programmable overcurrent protection,
thereby providing robust protection for both the system
and the circuit board.
Input Supply Transient Suppression and Filtering
The MIC2587/MIC2587R is guaranteed to withstand
transient voltage spikes up to 100V. However, voltage
spikes in excess of 100V may cause damage to the
controller. In order to suppress transients caused by
parasitic inductances, wide (and short) power traces
should be utilized. Alternatively, heavier trace plating will
help minimize inductive spikes that may arise during
events that cause a large di/dt to occur (e.g., short circuit
loads). External surge protection, such as a clamping
diode, is also recommended as an added safeguard for
device, and system protection. And lastly, a 0.1礔
decoupling capacitor from the VCC pin to ground is
recommended to assist in noise rejection. Place this filter
capacitor as close as possible to the VCC pin of the
controller.
Start-Up Cycle
When     the     power     supply     voltage     to     the
MIC2587/MIC2587R is higher than the V
UVH
and the V
ONH
threshold voltages, a start cycle is initiated. When the
controller is enabled, an internal 16礎(chǔ) current source
(I
GATEON
) is turned on and the GATE pin voltage rises
from 0V with respect to ground at a rate equal to
Equation 1:
V
GATE
dt
=
I
GATEON
C
Eq. 1
where C
GATE
is the total capacitance seen at the GATE
output of the controller (external capacitor from GATE to
ground plus C
GS
of the external MOSFET). The internal
charge pump has sufficient output drive to fully enhance
commonly available power MOSFETs for the lowest
possible DC losses. The gate drive is guaranteed to be
between 7.5V and 18V over the entire supply voltage
operating range (10V to 80V), so 60V BV
DSS
and 30V
BV
DSS
N-channel power MOSFETs with a maximum gate-
source voltage of 20V can be used for +48V and +24V
applications, respectively. However, due to the harsh
electrical environments of most backplanes and other
live power supplies, the use of 100V and 60V power
MOSFETs, respectively, is recommended to withstand
transient    spikes    caused    by    stray    inductances.
Additionally, an external Zener diode (18-V) connected
from the source to the gate as shown in the typical
applications circuit is also recommended. A good choice
for an 18-V Zener diode in this application is the
MMSZ5248B, available in a small SOD123 package.
C4 is used to adjust the GATE voltage slew rate while R3
minimizes   the   potential   for   high-frequency   parasitic
oscillations from occurring in M1. However, note that
resistance in this part of the circuit has a slight
destabilizing   effect   upon   the   MIC2587/MIC2587R's
current regulation loop. Compensation resistor R4 is
necessary for stabilization of the current regulation loop.
The current through the power transistor during initial
inrush is given by:
INRUSH
= C
LOAD
?/DIV>
I
GATEON
C
Eq. 2
The drain current of the MOSFET is monitored via an
external current sense resistor to ensure that it never
exceeds the programmed threshold, as described in the
"Circuit Breaker Operation" section.
A capacitor connected to the controllers TIMER pin sets
the value of overcurrent detector delay, t
FLT
, which is the
time for which an overcurrent event must last to signal a
fault condition and to cause the output to latch-off. The
MIC2587/MIC2587R controller is most often utilized in
applications with large capacitive loads, so a properly
chosen value of C
TIMER
prevents false-, or nuisance-,
tripping at turn-on as well as providing immunity to noise
spikes after the start-up cycle is complete. The procedure
for selecting a value for C
TIMER
is given in the "Circuit
Breaker Operation" section.